Research and Curriculum Unit
Office of Research and Economic Development

2011-2012

1

The Research and Curriculum Unit, located in Starkville, Miss., as part of Mississippi
State University, was formally established in 1965 to foster educational enhancements and
innovations. Formerly a division within the College of Education, the RCU became a research
center in 1999 under the Office of Research and Economic Development. In keeping with the
land-grant mission of Mississippi State University, the RCU is dedicated to improving the
quality of life for Mississippians. The RCU enhances intellectual and professional development
of Mississippi students and educators while applying knowledge and educational research
to the lives of the people of Mississippi. The RCU works within the contexts of curriculum
development and revision, research, assessment, professional development and training.
For more information about the Research and Curriculum Unit, please visit the RCU's website
at http://www.rcu.msstate.edu.

VISION

The RCU's vision is an innovative, equitable and sustainable economy for
Mississippi.

MISSION

The RCU is dedicated to preparing a resilient and self-sufficient workforce
through service, learning and research.
2

TABLE OF CONTENTS
2 Introduction
3

Message from the Director

4

High Performance Leadership
Institute Follow Up

6

Performance-based
Compensation System

8

Technology Update

11

Achieve Spotlight

13

Curriculum Development

14

Professional Learning Center

15

Mississippi Assessment Center

16
Public Relations and
Communication
17

Special Projects, Community
Outreach and Service

18

Funding Summary

20

Accomplishments and
Professional Service

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
This year, we continued investing efforts to implement ideas that were
challenging and outside the traditional RCU area of experience. While our
strongest intellectual capital remains in the field of career and technical
education, the CTE world finds itself more and more connected with
traditional academics. In a response to the Common Core State Standards,
the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education
Consortium released the Common Career Technical Core. CTE instructors
are learning to embed the CCSS into their curricula, and academic teachers
are teaming with CTE instructors in the new career academy models being
piloted in Mississippi.
One project that moved the RCU into a new area of expertise is the research
we did for a performance-pay model for teachers in the state of Mississippi.
Although sometimes controversial, most people agree that our highly
effective teachers should earn more. As they say, the “devil is in the details.”
The story on page 8 explains our rationale and research for recommending a
differentiated compensation system based on the theory that improving the
teacher-evaluation process will lead to better teaching practices and improved
student outcomes. As we work with the pilot districts around the state, the
RCU will continue evaluating the implementation and outcomes.
This project and many others described in this annual report are in the pilot
phase. An important reminder for us all is that in research and development,
the best way to make improvements is through experimentation and
evaluation. As always when taking risks and exploring the unknown, we have
to be open to the possibility that some strategies will not garner the results we
expect. Then, there are those unexpected and sometimes pleasant surprises.
For us, just as it is for the educators in the schools statewide, a culture of
learning, where new ideas are encouraged and learning from mistakes
is supported, is vital. If we do not try because we are afraid of skeptics and
failure, we learn nothing, education will not improve and the impact we have
is non-existent. So try we are.
Embracing that philosophy, we accepted a series of responsibilities for many
new projects that have never been attempted or tested before in Mississippi.
As states across the nation try to do what is best for students, a quote by MIT’s
great physicist, Victor Weisskopf, should be repeated often: “It doesn’t matter
what we cover; it matters what we discover.”
Here’s to a year filled with discovery. Hope you enjoy the read.
Best regards,

21

Presentations

Julie Jordan
Director, Research and Curriculum Unit
Mississippi State University
3

high performance leadership institute
follow up
by heather wainwright

"I embrace change that will enhance our
school organization,” said West Oktibbeha County
Elementary School principal Andrea Temple, a 2012 Cohort
I graduate of the Mississippi State University Research and
Curriculum Unit’s High Performance Leadership Institute.
As a participant in the program, she has orchestrated a
major turnaround in student performance in just three
years as WOCES’ leader.
In Mississippi, where the quality of public education is
frequently rated in national surveys among the lowest of
all states, identifying and supporting school leaders like
Temple who can instigate dramatic improvements in their
institutions is paramount. In a recent study published in
Education Next, researchers determined that a highly
effective principal’s effect on student achievement is
equivalent to two to seven months of additional learning
each school year while ineffective principals can lower
achievement by the same amount. In high-poverty schools,
the impact can mean an additional seven months of learning
for students in a single school year. Acknowledging this
fundamental and critical need for effective leadership to
advance student learning and achievement in the state, the
RCU developed the HPLI, a two-year program funded by
a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission, the
Mississippi Department of Education, and the National
Governors Association, specifically designed for training
education leaders to devise rapid changes in their schools
that will dramatically shift school performance to much
higher levels in a short period.
“We have structured the HPLI as a leadership-academy
experience intended to better prepare our principals
and teachers to face head-on the challenges of school
improvement,” said RCU Director Julie Jordan who
oversees the project. “Our vision for the program is that
4

it will contribute to growing the pool of successful school
leaders in Mississippi for years to come.”
As a member of the inaugural cohort and now a graduate of
the program, Temple and her successful efforts to transform
WOCES demonstrate the potential that HPLI has to help
and support schools across the state that need or are in the
process of change to improve school performance. WOCES
is part of the Oktibbeha County School District, of which the
Mississippi Department of Education has assumed control
due to its accreditation failure last year. Just prior to the
state take-over, the MDE released all of the public schools’
Quality Distribution Index scores. Despite the dire state of

WOCES principal Andrea Temple and EOCES principal Yolanda Dixon-Magee

other schools in the district, WOCES scored a 176, qualifying
it as a High Performing or B-grade school. Considering that
when Temple took the helm at WOCES in 2009, its QDI
score was 90 or Failing (F), the school’s score in 2012 is quite
an achievement, and it is even more significant because
it is the highest score of any school in either OCSD or the
neighboring Starkville School District. WOCES was also
recently named an “Exceed School” by the Mississippi Center
for Public Policy, which recognizes the top 20 highest scoring
public schools in Mississippi with poverty rates above 90%.
WOCES was seventh on the list for the entire state.
Temple is not alone in her district as an HPLI participant
or school reformer. Yolanda Dixon-Magee is the principal
of sister-school East Oktibbeha County Elementary School,
and she is also a Cohort I graduate of the HPLI. She has
been the principal at EOCES for just four years. “The HPLI
program assisted us in focusing on the most important
aspects of student achievement, making sure the areas of
change would be immediate and effective,” said DixonMagee about her participation in HPLI and the subsequent

changes she has made at EOCES. And effective they have
been: Her school’s QDI increased 35 points in 2012,
bringing the school’s grade from At Risk of Failing (F) in
2010 to Successful (C).
The HPLI is modeled after the Darden-Curry Partnership
for Leaders in Education at the University of Virginia,
harnessing proven business-world strategies and applying
them to education. This approach is proving to be timely
and effective for Mississippi schools, as is clearly evident at
WOCES and EOCES as well as at other Mississippi schools
that have participated in the program. For instance, Connie
Johnson, principal of West Kemper Elementary School, has
graduated from the program, and principals Patricia Cox
of Montgomery County Elementary School, Lewis Zeigler
of Montgomery County High School and Leslie Busby of
Batesville Junior High School are current HPLI participants.
All four of these schools scored a Successful (C) in the state’s
2012 QDI ratings, raising their scores significantly from
their previous Failing (F), Low Performing (F) or Academic
Watch (D) statuses.

Cohort I - Graduated Summer 2012
School District

Status 09-10

Status 11-12

QDI

Kemper County
West Kemper Elem HPLI Paricipant
East Kemper Elem.
Kemper County High

Failing [F]
failing [F]

Academic Watch [D]
Successful [C]

+36
+43

Failing [F]
Failing [F]

Academic Watch [D]
Academic Watch [D]

+22
+34

At Risk of Failing [F]
At Risk of Failing [F]

academic watch [D]
Successful [C]

+17
+22

Failing [F]
Academic Watch [D]

Failing [F]
High Performing [B]

-1
+52

Failing [F]

Low Performing [F]

-3

High Performing [B]

+7

Oktibbeha County
East Oktibbeha County Elem hpli participant
East Oktibbeha County High
West Oktibbeha County Elem hpli participant
West Oktibbeha County High
CORinth school district

CORinth Elem- hpli participant 3 schools merged

5

"A different skill set is needed when you have rapid,
comprehensive change efforts than when you just need to
maintain status quo, and these two HPLI graduates have
applied to their schools the standard business practices
that are at the heart of the program. Their significantly
improved accountability scores attest to the effectiveness
of this approach and its relevance for education reform,"
said Jordan.
Participants commit to two consecutive summers of
training, during which they receive instruction from MSU
faculty and professional staff from the RCU and the College
of Education as well as from other experts from across the
state. The content of the training covers systems, processes
and best practices, both from education and business
perspectives, merging the two into a packaged skill set for
executive leadership that empowers the attendees to take
the necessary actions to transform their schools. More
specifically, the cohort groups address a range of topics
from 90-day action plans and crucial conversations to
characteristics of high-performing schools and hiring the
right people. To help sustain the leaders’ enthusiasm and
momentum, HPLI project staff make site visits, and the
RCU hosts midyear retreats in the spring that focus on
developing management systems for implementing datadriven decision-making and a high-performance team at
the school level.
A consistent theme exists throughout all of the HPLI
training – the use of data to identify needs, track changes
and document success. In fact, use of performance data
has been essential to both Temple and Dixon-Magee in
the changes they have instituted. "We utilize data

to ensure that it drives instruction daily,"

explained Temple, who credits the school’s data room and
data team for driving her, the faculty, the students and their
parents to embrace and reach schoolwide improvement
goals. The WOCES data room is in a designated, central
location in the school where test scores are charted in
various ways, including on circles where the students
themselves clip clothespins on their levels of achievement.
6

West Oktibbeha County Elementary students with their data wall.

Their data team consists of eight teachers, who track statetest practice scores for each teacher, and each teacher
prominently displays his or her class’s QDI score based on
the students’ results. By posting the data where everyone
can see it, WOCES teachers, students and even parents can
visualize successes and areas needing improvement. DixonMagee similarly attributes the faculty and staff using all
available data sources to coordinate and inform classroom
instruction as a key factor to the school’s significant
accountability-score improvement. EOCES’ data room is in
the teachers’ resource room and is used during curriculum
planning and professional development. Both the data
room and the data team are recommendations from the
HPLI program for visually helping administrators, teachers
and students track and feel accountable for their progress
toward obtaining their goals.
Another important aspect of the HPLI program is the
collegiality it fosters. Participants not only network during the
summer training, but they continue to collaborate throughout
the school year, even visiting one another’s schools.
“We really appreciate being able to share ideas with others
in the profession with similar issues, and it meant a great
deal to be able to visit a school with similar demographics
where students are ‘making the grade,’” said Dixon-Magee.
She’s transferred that spirit of collaboration into her school
as well, where she has implemented cross-grade and crosscurricular planning and professional development for
her faculty and staff. For Dixon-Magee, this strategy not

HPLI

School District

Start date

Graduation date

cohort 1

kemper county
oktibbeha county
corinth

june 2010

june 2012

cohort 2

starkville

june 2011

june 2013

cohort 3

Columbus
water valley
louisville

November 2011

November 2013

cohort 4

Montgomery
South Panola

June 2012

June 2014

only mitigates teacher burnout, but it also has been key to
transforming attitudes among her faculty such that they
embrace the changes being implemented to improve the
school’s performance.
Following yet another HPLI concept, both schools have
adopted new programming as well, in an attempt to
contribute to and bolster the emerging culture of success
that is developing on their campuses. WOCES was recently
awarded a $25,000 grant from Project Fit America to
improve the playground and exercise resources at the school.
EOCES has partnered with its Parent Teacher Association
for a program where parents volunteer for one hour in a
classroom to give teachers extra time to plan and the parents
an opportunity to observe classroom activity. The Day One
program at MSU’s Montgomery Leadership Institute and
the Greater Starkville Partnership both provide tutoring
volunteers to the schools, and other MSU-student groups
have helped with beautification efforts on both campuses.
Like most people who have dedicated their careers to
education, they do it for the students. Temple explained
that improved scores means improved instruction, and
with that, their students are ensured a quality education.

Dixon-Magee echoed her colleague, stating that students
“need knowledge, self confidence and motivation if they
are to succeed.” At both WOCES and EOCES the students
are getting a solid foundation of success at an early age, a
footing that will carry them through the rest of their school
years and into the workforce.
With the fifth Cohort already recruited, the HPLI is an
asset to Mississippi school districts in their efforts to
improve public education for all students. With proven
processes and systems, educational leaders, such as the
principals at the Oktibbeha County elementary schools,
are given tools and expertise to implement rapid changes
that translate into immediate and positive turnaround
successes. Even more exciting is that Temple, Dixon-Magee
and the participants in the other four HPLI cohort groups
are committed to extending the progress they have made
thus far to still greater improvements and higher QDI
scores. They all will be able to use what they

gained from the HPLI to propel them to
their new goals. The HPLI strives to make these

types of transformations the rule rather than the exception
in Mississippi, contributing to long-term, sustainable
achievement of high-performing schools.

7

Governor Bryant tasks the RCU to research
performance-pay models for teachers

by Kristen Dechert

With record underachievement numbers and a 25 percent
dropout rate statewide, improvements in Mississippi’s
educational system are needed more than ever. To meet
those needs, Gov. Phil Bryant tasked the Mississippi State
University Research and Curriculum Unit with studying
performance-pay models nationwide. In May of this year,
following several months of research, RCU Director Julie
Jordan, former RCU Special Projects Manager Robin Parker
and independent researcher Elizabeth Cooper submitted
their findings to the governor in a report titled “Effective
Teachers and Performance Pay: A Recommendation for
Mississippi’s Performance Compensation System.”
Currently, Mississippi teacher pay is based on tenure and
credentials. Teachers receive the same base pay across the
board regardless of their effectiveness. Governor Bryant
and the report’s principal authors say this system needs
to change in order to address the current shortfalls in
student outcomes.

"Research indicates the single factor
most affecting student learning is
effective teaching," said Jordan at a July

press conference with Gov. Bryant to announce a new
performance-based compensation plan. This plan rewards
teachers for measured effectiveness in the classroom
and provides school leaders with a management tool to
enhance teaching and learning, she added.

According to Bryant, “We should pay for what works, not
for what merely has been accepted.”
Although hopeful the plan will pass in the current
legislative session, the governor expects to meet some
resistance to performance pay from educators. He says
he both welcomes and appreciates that resistance. At the
press conference, both he and Jordan maintained the
plan’s ability to be adapted to a district’s unique needs.

8

Gov. Bryant presents the performance-based compensation system.

“You will find that we are not recommending a heavyhanded, one-size-fits-all approach,” said Bryant. “Instead,
you will see a flexible, accountable method that local
districts can use that makes sense for their children and
for their teachers.”
Jordan agreed that the framework must be flexible in order
to best help districts meet local needs. “The state should
establish some guidelines and minimums, but districts
must have the opportunity to define their compensation
plans to fit their local needs and budgets.”
Concerns of equity among districts and among teachers
within a district will likely arise. Districts have different
budgets, and teachers have different students. Bryant and
Jordan are firm that the flexibility of this plan can level
the playing field. Examples of the plan’s adaptability given
at the press conference included the option for a district
to weight goals in order to drive graduation rates or
improve fifth-grade reading scores. Rather than statewide
mandates and benchmarks, said Bryant, districts and
principals can set specific quantitative and qualitative
goals for their teachers that are reasonable and attainable.

25% dropout rate statewide

Julie Jordan and Robin Parker with Gov. Bryant

For those concerned that the plan is merely a way to reprimand,
Jordan said, “It’s not all about the ‘gotcha’ for the teacher. It is
about finding where teachers need to improve … so that they
can improve what’s happening in the classroom and the results
for the students.”
A number of new educational practices and initiatives will be
introduced in the coming years, with one of the largest being
the new Mississippi Statewide Appraisal Rubric, or M-STAR.
With M-STAR, teachers will receive a comprehensive review,
including planned and surprise classroom visits, evaluation of
planning materials and analysis of student test scores. Jordan
feels the new pay system and M-STAR logically connect. “The
objective of merging M-STAR with the compensation system
is to encourage more effective teaching practices, reward those
who excel and thus improve student outcomes for all children
in Mississippi.”
The proposed performance-pay system will go before the
legislature in the current session with plans to pilot it in several
districts around the state. Depending on the actions of the
legislature and the implementation of the districts, Mississippi
may very well have a new educational landscape in the near
future, and according to Jordan and other RCU staff, this plan
is a step in the right direction. “No matter where teachers start,
it’s about getting better at what we’re doing in the classroom.”
To read the full report, visit http://www.governorbryant.
com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Performance-basedcompensation-Plan.pdf.

9

TECHNOLOGY UPDATE
by heather wainwright

The Research and Curriculum Unit at Mississippi State University offers a full spectrum of curriculum, professional
-development and research services to support career and technical education in the state. In order to improve the
opportunities for learning and teaching in Mississippi, the RCU has committed considerable resources to updating,
upgrading and enhancing its technology to provide or supplement these services online.

new website launches: redesign enhances access to cte
resources statewide
The Research and Curriculum Unit’s website has undergone
a major overhaul to better serve career and technical
education stakeholders across Mississippi. Throughout the
last 12 months, the RCU has morphed its entire website
from what used to be a loosely joined set of multiple sites
into a single, dynamic, user-friendly, all-inclusive online
resource. The new design has successfully transformed
the appearance, organization and content of the formerly
disparate sites so that all of the comprehensive services,
information and resources available from the RCU are easily
recognizable, consistently accessible and readily navigated

from one centralized website.
The updated site has a number of new features:
• All content is searchable.
• Additional security and customization is possible
through district logins.
• New reporting and document-library features allow
significantly easier access to data and information.
• And to showcase the impact of CTE in the state, new
content sections highlight both available services and
success stories.

search bar

LOGIN
10

Center; links to facilitate MS-CPAS2 and teachercertification testing
Curriculum: downloadable access to all secondary and
postsecondary Pathways to Success and CTE curricula,
blueprints, programs of study, pathway maps and other
related documents

Assessment: cyber home to the Mississippi Assessment
MDE: online updates and biannual CTE magazine from the Mississippi Department of Education; portal for Pathways to
Success; information/registration for endorsement training, career academy and Excellence for All programs
MCCB: updates from Mississippi Community College of the various components of the site. Additional features
that will improve delivery of or access to information and
Board; information for Workforce Advantage program
resources are constantly being considered and planned for
Special Initiatives: information about unique opportunities implementation.
available through the RCU, including the High Performance
Through a consistent, professional image, centralized
Leadership Institute
access to all services and resources, and illustrations of
Portal: central location to retrieve MS-CPAS2 testing educators’ and students’ successes, the website serves to
data; downloadable resources for assessment, curriculum promote CTE statewide, providing community outreach as
and Pathways to Success; submission of Help Desk tickets well as program support. Foremost, if our educators have
for technical support; links to various online education ready access to current, relevant information and resources
websites
to support their programs and their own professional
The changes to the website are ongoing, as feedback from development, then they serve the students in the state with
users, new projects and developments from the MDE and in the best possible array of tools at their disposal, and they
CTE inspire regular updates, enhancements and expansion are equipped to prepare career- and college-ready students.

New data portal: Efficient testing and accessible results promote
better CTE programs for Mississippi students
AccordingtoAssessmentManagerSeanOwen,“the[Mississippi
Assessment Center] is working to transform MS-CPAS2 and its
data into a catalyst for educators and administrators to make
data-driven decisions” as they design and modify their
programs to better serve Mississippi’s students. One of the

primary instruments for this transformation has been the
data portal hosted on the Research and Curriculum Unit’s
website. Created, designed and managed by the Business
Application Solutions group at the RCU, the data portal is
a data-management system with a dynamic, user-friendly
11

interface that provides centralized, customizable information;
efficient testing and reporting; and consistent, timely results.
The data portal also has been tailored with specific features
to maximize access to data. Specifically, unique district
logins allow the system to tailor MS-CPAS2 reports for test
coordinators statewide. Another enhancement grants the
Mississippi Department of Education access not only to the
reports but also to the articulation data and test results that
inform the reports, as well as other data requests. The portal
also houses a new testing-document library that both test
coordinators and teachers can utilize for testing resources.
Integrated with all of these tools are many behind-the-scenes
changes that have streamlined and improved the testing
process itself and have enabled the efficient reporting for
which the data portal provides an interface. Perhaps the most
exciting feature of the data portal is that it continues to evolve
in order to better serve MDE and RCU stakeholders. The RCU’s
MAC regularly solicits feedback from users, and this input
inspires additional improvements and enhancements to the
data portal’s function and content.
The advent of the data portal has literally transformed MSCPAS2 testing and reporting. Just a couple of years ago, the
process was mostly manual, and districts might have had
to wait nearly two months for paper test results to be hand
processed. The data portal has alleviated this bottleneck,

Score
reports
available
75% faster

12

8 weeks

2 weeks

THEN

NOW

Lisa Hardjono and Peter Graves were instrumental in the website redesign.

making it possible to administer, score and analyze the tests
and then post results within 14 days of the exam. Closing the
reporting gap from two months to a maximum of 14 days
means that teachers, administrators and districts can use
that data to make needed improvements to their classes and
programs quickly. “[The] results can be translated into useful
modifications to instructional strategies that better serve
the career and technical education students in Mississippi,”
said Owen. More specifically, testing coordinators can easily
provide teachers with results soon after the tests are scored.
In return, those teachers can align their own professional
development with areas of their greatest need as well as modify
their curricula and instructional methods to better address
their students’ needs. Now able to easily access longitudinal
testing data, CTE directors, principals and school districts can
strategize and implement relevant and prompt adjustments to
better distribute their faculty and facility resources according
to identified strengths and weaknesses. Teachers who excel can
also be recognized, and those who need additional professional
support can be guided to appropriate training.
By providing interactive, relevant tools, such as the online
data portal, the RCU’s MAC strives to make data-informed
CTE-program development an accessible and attainable
achievement for all Mississippi school districts. The resulting
synergy from this proactive, real-time response to testing data
benefits the CTE students in the state, for as their programs
evolve and improve, so, too, does their education and
experience, ensuring they graduate college- or career-ready.

National organization shines
spotlight on MSU-based RCU

by leah barbour

Mississippi is setting an example in education, and it’s
one other states should imitate, according to a national
education reform organization.
Achieve Inc. recently cited Mississippi State University’s
Research and Curriculum Unit’s work with the Mississippi
Department of Education as a partnership that other states
should mimic in training career and technical education
teachers how to incorporate English language arts and
mathematics Common Core State Standards into their
curriculum.
Achieve, which helped develop the CCSS, recently released
its report, “Common Core State Standards & Career and
Technical Education: Bridging the Divide between College
and Career Readiness,” available at www.achieve.org.
The document cited the RCU as “exemplary” in its efforts to
modernize or develop instructional resources for teachers.
By setting the standard in connecting CTE with the CCSS,
the RCU is making itself a part of a national initiative to
graduate more students from high school ready for college
and career, the report stated.

"In the long term, we should have more
students leaving high school knowing
what they want to do,” said Julie Jordan, RCU
director. “Career and tech and academic classes are
beginning to connect them to what’s going to happen after
they graduate. Getting a good job: That’s the goal.”

When commissioned in 2010 by the MDE to connect the
CCSS to Mississippi’s CTE courses, RCU leaders said they
chose to focus on the three Rs, though not the traditional

ones. The RCU is working to improve classroom rigor,
relevance and relationships, and based on Achieve’s report,
these three Rs are working.
The underlying goal of the CCSS, which have been adopted
by 45 states, is to ensure that high school graduates are
ready for college and careers in the 21st-century global
economy. Since reading and math are integral parts of CTE
coursework, connecting the CCSS directly to CTE should
improve student performance in both academic and CTE
classrooms, according to the report.
“Academic and CTE teachers are brought in (by RCU) to
collaborate on the process, allowing academic teachers to more
easily see how CTE adds relevance to their own courses, as well
as supports the CCSS in literacy and math,” the report stated.
Betsey Smith, RCU curriculum manager, and Jordan agreed

that CTE educators in Mississippi are learning to connect
more rigorous standards with added relevance for students
by building strong relationships with academic teachers.
Smith said the CCSS are being implemented throughout
Mississippi: Kindergarten through fifth grades began
during the 2011-2012 academic year; sixth through eighth
grades during the fall 2012 semester; and ninth through
12th grades in fall 2013.
“We’re asking school districts to make sure all our career
and tech ed instructors are attending the same training as
the academic teachers. That way they’re all learning the
same language. If they start hearing the same language
and teaching with the same words, the classrooms will be
reinforcing the same concepts,” Smith explained.
Using a common language will reinforce concepts, Jordan
said. Then, the unified coursework will support increased
rigor across the curriculum, as well as suggest its relevance
14

Fall 2013
9th Grade
10th Grade
11th Grade
12th Grade

to students across the state.
The relationships formed from teacher trainings are
strengthening partnerships among academic and CTE
teachers, which will further reinforce the rigor and
relevance of all the coursework Mississippi students are
learning, she continued.
“This change is going to help all kids be successful and
better prepared for college and careers, and the three Rs of
rigor, relevance and relationships are a big part of it,” she
said.
The RCU is only beginning to accomplish its plan of
embedding the CCSS into CTE coursework, Jordan and
Smith agreed. More training lies ahead, and collaborations
with education stakeholders will continue. As the CCSS
become an integral part of classrooms across the state,
Mississippi children should benefit.

Curriculum development
POSTSECONDARY

A TOTAL OF

24
new curricula

written impacted

650
classes across

the state.

SECONDARY

A TOTAL OF

11

new curricula
written impacted

603
classes across
the state.

163 Teachers participated
in writing curricula.
15

professional learning center
The Professional Learning Center helps educators perfect their craft of teaching.
Using versatile teaching styles combined with the latest technological delivery
methods, the PLC encourages educators to implement innovative teaching strategies
to instruct an increasing population of diverse learners. Professional-development
seminars are based on a philosophy of continuous improvement measured through student
performance that identifies areas where additional educator learning is necessary.

mississippi assessment center
The Mississippi Assessment Center brings together faculty and staff with
demonstrated experience in researching, developing and disseminating
statewide career and technical assessments to participate in test alignment
and validation reviews. Dedicated and professional staff, efficient timelines
and valuable experience enable the MAC to deliver the required materials and services in
the most timely and economic manner for the Mississippi Department of Education and
the Mississippi Community College Board. The MAC offers high-quality assessments and
professional development aligned with the state curriculum.

Promoting the Value of Career and Technical Education
The RCU communication team provides strategic and creative solutions for public relations,
educational market research and technical-analysis projects that ultimately generate a positive
public image of education that promote its value to the state of Mississippi.

Special projects
• Redesigned new-teacher induction, formerly known as the Vocational Instructor
Preparation program
• Assisted with legislative reports regarding early college high schools, dual enrollment
and alternative diploma options
• Supported the 2011 postsecondary CTE summer conference
• Facilitated focus groups for the Principal Evaluation System
• Consulted with Michigan's Oakland Schools Intermediate School District to transition
courses to an online environment using the Certification of Online Learning program
• Completed Year 2 of performance-based-assessment pilots
• Conducted Pathways to Success training sessions throughout the state for 11,000
participants from all 152 school districts

The HPLI is an innovative approach that helps education leaders make dramatic shifts in school performance. The RCU provides realtime support with onsite retreats, site visits, teleconferences and online chats.

Teacher Education for Rural
U.S. Department of Education
October 2011 $185,000
Middle Schools (TERMS)
September 2014
The RCU serves as an evaluator of TERMS, an alternative-route master of arts in teaching degree program, that aims to attract
nonteaching professionals into the classroom.
Mississippi Delta Workforce Funding
March 2012 - March 2014
$44,030
Collaborative
The RCU is evaluating whether Mississippi Delta residents are learning how to live healthier lifestyles and improve socioeconomic status
as a result of health and financial back-to-work classes.
Evaluation

Performance-Based
Appalachian Regional Commission
November 2011 - May 2012
$28,508
Compensation System
Effective Teachers and Performance Pay, an RCU research report, propose a performance-based compensation system that will work
with M-STAR, the new MDE teacher-evaluation model.
Retraining the Gulf Coast Workforce U.S. Department of Labor: Trade Adjustment
through IT Pathways Consortium
Assistance Community College and Career
Training Grant

ACCOMPLISHMENTS &
PROFESSIONAL SErViCE
• Melissa Davis, Ph.D., research associate III and assessment specialist, earned a doctoral degree in educational foundations
from Mississippi State University, her Certification of Online Instruction and her Certification of Online Learning.
• Doug Ferguson, Ph.D., senior research associate and instructional design specialist, earned a doctoral degree in instructional
systems and workforce development with a minor in community college leadership.
• Diane Godwin, program manager, earned a Social Media for Trainers certificate from Training Live+Online.
• Craig Jackson, media specialist, earned a Social Media for Trainers certificate from Training Live+Online.
• Julie Jordan, director, was appointed as a state representative to the governing board of the national Career Pathways Collaborative
project, designing national assessments for CTE programs. She was invited to be a member of the education task force working for
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant's office on education-reform issues. She was the key stakeholder and co-author of "Effective Teachers
and Performance Pay: A Recommendation for Mississippi's Performance Compensation System."
• Scott Kolle, Ph.D., senior research associate and instructional design specialist, earned a doctoral degree from Mississippi
State University in agricultural science with an emphasis in agricultural and extension education. In addition, Kolle served
as a member of the Career Pathways Collaborative and as a taskforce member for the General Education and General
Agriculture Assessment areas.
• Leanne Long, Ph.D., assistant research professor and professional learning project manager, was appointed president of
Learning Forward Mississippi.
• LeAnn Miller, instructional design specialist, became a member of the Mississippi Energy Workforce Consortium.
• Emily Owen, research associate III and instructional design specialist, earned a master's degree in instructional technology.
• Sean Owen, Ph.D., associate research professor and assessment manager, became a member of the National Certification
General CTE Assessment and the National Certification General Agriculture Assessment Advisory Committees. In addition,
Owen served as a member of the Career Pathways Collaborative and served as a taskforce member for the General Education
and General Agriculture Assessment areas.
• Myra Pannell, research associate III and instructional design specialist, earned the ACTE Engineering and Technology
Education Division 2011 Service Award and served as the ACTE Engineering and Technology Education Division secretary.
• Ellen Shaw, research specialist, earned a Certification of Online Learning and her Assessment Certification Training Program
coordinator license renewal from the National Center for Construction Education and Research.
22

• Kolle, S. (2012, March). Growing students through research-based instructional strategies used in agricultural
education. Presented at the Gulf South Adult and Career Education Professional Development
Conference, Valdosta, GA.

• Owen, E. (2011, November). Technology: Your gateway to effective instruction in the health sciences. Presented at the
Association for Career and Technical Education Annual Convention and Career Tech Expo, St. Louis, MO.
• Owen, S. M. (November, 2011). Preparing teachers for the 21st century classroom through performance-
based technology assessment. Presented at the Association for Career and Technical Education
Annual Convention and Career Tech Expo, St. Louis, MO.
• Pannell, M., & Bowen, M. (2011, November). Pencils down! Statewide performance based assessment
with polymer science students. Presented at the Association for Career and Technical Education
Annual Convention and Career Tech Expo, St. Louis, MO.
• Pannell, M., & Parker, R. (2011, November). No money, no problem! Technology tools you can use. Presented
at the Association for Middle Level Education Conference, Louisville, KY.
• Sibley, D., & Davis, C. (2011, November). The career pathway experience: Closing the work-based learning
opportunity gap in a jobless economy. Presented at the Association for Career and Technical
Education Annual Convention and Career Tech Expo, St. Louis, MO.
• Sibley, D., & Davis, C. (2011, November). Performance-based assessment in Mississippi: Get real with CTE
assessments. Presented at the Association for Career and Technical Education Annual Convention
and Career Tech Expo, St. Louis, MO.
• Smith, B., & Long, L. (2011, November). G.R.A.S.P. performance assessment in early childhood education.
Presented at the Association for Career and Technical Education Annual Convention and Career Tech
Expo, St. Louis, MO.

25

new mississippi counseling model

Empowering Counselors and Teachers
They come from families with limited English proficiency,
where parents are unemployed or maybe working two jobs
and still struggling to pay the bills. Some have grandparents
as guardians because their parents have abandoned them.
Others deal with a parent who is terminally ill or a single
parent juggling work and life schedules. Then there are cases
where multiple families live together in very small dwellings
just to afford a roof over their heads and food to eat. These
are the kinds of real-life pressures many of today’s young
people wake to every day. Before they even step foot onto
school property, these kids must navigate and manage more
daily stress than any previous generation.
This predicament leaves America’s teachers and school
counselors to grapple with balancing oftentimes limited
resources in order to accommodate students’ basic needs and
to achieve goals of raising student educational achievement.
Educators must find time and means to help students deal
with social and emotional conflict, learn required subjectarea content and catch-up with remedial lessons. Students
with test anxiety or the inability to test well also require
additional support for taking exams required by the No
Child Left Behind Act.
Noting the convergence of these circumstances, the
American School Counselor Association has conducted
research that provides evidence that the teacher-counselor
working relationship is more crucial now than ever because
“student outcomes are shaped by many aspects of students’
lives that do not occur in the classroom.” As a result, the
ASCA is recommending that the nation’s school systems
adopt a national counseling model based on real-world
insight, where teachers and counselors work together to
create innovative lesson plans to teach subject-area content
and provide support and intervention for students.
26

by diane godwin & heather wainwright

The Mississippi Department of Education looked at the state’s
student data and heeded the ASCA’s advice. Betsey Smith,
a former school counselor and now curriculum manager
for the Research and Curriculum Unit at Mississippi State
University, wrote the Mississippi counseling model with
support from school counselors around the state. Based
on ASCA recommendations, the Mississippi model puts
counselors in a proactive role in which they serve all students
and interact with them on a day-to-day basis. Working with
teachers and administrators, counselors join data teams to
analyze the information and create educational programs
and lesson plans that will make a difference in the lives of
students. The goal is to combine expertise to create content
and instruction that serve the students’ needs and prepare
them for life after high school, which usually entails pursuit
of some type of postsecondary education or certification.
Placing counselors in a strategic, front-line role is a dramatic
break from what has become commonplace for the last 30

stress is the #1 factor in
academic disruption

1 in 5

only 52% of
freshmen say
their emotional
health is above
average

students has felt
too stressed to
study or be with
friends

1 in 5

has considered
dropping out of
school because
of this

http://dailyinfographic.com/stressed-out-students-infographic

“Each school will have the structure of the model to guide
them, but their counseling plan will offer different programs
based on the academic and social needs of the students in that
school,” Christian said. “Right now, we’re teaching counselors
to develop a plan and how to access and gather data about their
students to develop programs that will meet their needs.”

Charlotte Christian, Director of Counseling for Rankin County
School District; Betsey Smith, Curriculum Manager for the Mississippi State University Research and Curriculum Unit; and Patti
Harmon, District Test Coordinator for RCSD, at the training

years in many schools nationwide. Due to budget cuts and
staffing shortages, counselors have been expected to put
aside their counseling responsibilities to serve in various
other catchall roles, from test coordinators to substitute
teachers. “This puts highly trained professionals in a
reactionary position to provide skills and interact with
students only when a problem occurs,” said Smith. Rather
than let them continue in this underutilized capacity, this
new model recognizes “that counselors are key players, and
they are key student advocates who work hand-in-hand with
[administrators] to support their whole school mission.”
The Rankin County School District has seen the data and
the difference counselors can make if these professionals
are empowered to be leaders and have the vision to make
a difference for their students. Under the leadership of
Superintendent Lynn Weathersby, the RCSD is the first in
the state to adopt the Mississippi counseling model district
wide. Charlotte Christian, director of counseling for RCSD, is
consulting with Smith to train her team of counselors on how
to incorporate and customize the counseling model so that it
serves the unique culture and characteristics of each of the 27
schools in the district.

Jill Canoy is a counselor at Northwest Rankin High School,
and her team has created Power of One: How will you make
a difference?, a program based on the Mississippi counseling
model. According to Canoy, the process of implementing the
school-wide character-education plan has allowed them to
strategically define the school’s vision and purpose in order
to meet the needs of both students and teachers. Their efforts
are succeeding because the program is extremely popular
with students, teachers and administrators alike. "The whole
philosophy behind it is helping them find out what they
believe in, and in turn when they find out what their beliefs
are, they find what their purpose is in life. Like why are they
here and what do they want to do with their beliefs, and that
relates to our career pathways, Pathways to Success and helping
them find what kind of career they want,” Canoy explained.
Knowing the personal, social and economic challenges that
students face today, it is certainly not surprising that high
school dropout rates are high, as are the numbers of several
health and welfare concerns, such as teen pregnancy, obesity,
drug and alcohol use and even suicide. Education has been
proven to be a key factor in offsetting and even reverting
these trends, so finding ways to help kids handle the many
stresses in their lives and stay in school is paramount to
their finding more successful outcomes. Counseling experts
recommend that counselors need to be seen on the forefront
of the school every day to let students, teachers and principals
realize the value they can contribute to students’ education.
The effectiveness of the Power of One and the other piloted
counseling programs at RCSD is a hopeful example of
teachers and counselors on the forefront, empowered to help
empower students. Their ability to successfully implement
the Mississippi counseling model and positively affect the
lives of their students will undoubtedly inspire schools and
districts statewide to adopt the model themselves.

27

2011-2012
Supported by funding from The Mississippi Department of Education, The Mississippi Community College Board,
Institutions of Higher Learning and the Appalachian Regional Commission
A publication of the Research and Curriculum Unit, Office of Research and Economic Development
Mississippi State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability or veteran status.